Container type net construction



Oct. 15, 1957 e. ARNOLD 2,809,350

' CONTAINER TYPE NET CONSTRUCTION Filed July 18, 1955 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVE NTOR BY fl/ JFVM A r rare/v5 Y Oct. 15, 1957 G. ARNOLD 2,809,860

CONTAINER TYPE NET CONSTRUCTION Filed July 18, 1955 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTORNEY Oct. 15, 1957 G. ARNOLD 2,809,860

CONTAINER TYPE NET CONSTRUCTION FiledJuly 18, 1955 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR Qua/K4 43 M401 BY M Zww United States Patent Q 2,809,860 CONTAINER TYPE NET CONSTRUCTION Garland Arnold, Warrington, Pa., assignor to Eastern Rotorcraft Corporation, Doylestown, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application July 18, 1955, Serial No. 522,633 9 Claims. (31. 294-77 This invention relates to net construction and is particularly concerned with nets which may be opened up into a box shape to serve as a sling container for holding miscellaneous articles.

Nets of this type are particularly useful for slinging loads of cargo for example, in suspension underneath a helicopter for transporting from one position to another or attached to a parachute for dropping a load from an aircraft at a selected location. For such purposes it is desirable to provide a net construction which is not only capable of adapting itself to various shaped loads, but which is also strong and rugged and capable of being collapsed when not in use to permit storage in a restricted space. Such nets should also be relatively low in weight in order to prevent serious encroachment upon the limited load carrying capabilities of aircraft.

One of the objects of the present invention is the provision of a net construction having diagonal weave wherein the cable members of the mesh are located in angular relationship with respect to the edges of the not when it is extended into its normal box shape ready for receiving a load.

p A further object of the invention is provision of a favorable cable relationship for the sides of the net to give the diagonal weave and still provide the integral mesh relationship which permits connecting the corners of the meshes in one plane to corners of meshes in another plane. Such construction gives an effective box shape while still retaining a symmetrical mesh relationship at the corners. it is a further object of the invention to provide a box net having the diagonal relationship of the net members with the mesh corners along the upper edges of the net. The diagonal relationship at the vertical corners and upper edges provides a not which may be readily collapsed without tangling when not in use and further provides for flexibility in adapting the net to the shape of the load being carried.

A further object of the invention is the provision-of load transfer points in which fittings are provided with cable connections to carry out the diagonal relationship of the mesh elements.

A still further object is to provide special load transfer reinforcing cable members which are capable of handling shock loads and transferring the load to a plurality of members in the net, this construction including the carrying of the reinforcing cables across at least a portion of the bottom of the net.

in dropping loads from aircraft by means of parachutes, it is desirable to protect the load from the parachute opening shock and also from the landing shock by providing a supporting base to distribute the load to prevent local failure. It is an object of the present invention to provide special built-in reinforcing structure for this type of load while still retaining the advantages of the collapsing net for supporting the load at the sides. The reinforcing structure further serves as a skid means to allow moving the loaded net from one position to another.

2,809,860 Patented Oct. 15, 1957 How the foregoing and other objects and advantages are attained will be clear from the following description of the drawings in which- Figure 1 illustrates a net constructed according to the present invention supported in position below a helicopter.

Figure 2 is a view of the net in extended position showing its general shape when loaded.

Figure 3 illustrates the sling net in collapsed position ready for loading.

Figure 4 shows an alternate form of net having an integral plastic base tray suitable for use with aerial loads to be dropped by parachute.

Figure 5 shows a side elevational View of the tray por- 'tion of thenet.

Figure 6 shows a plan view of the net shown in Figures 4 and 5.

Figure 7 illustrates a manner in which the tray portion of the net may be supported in position in the aircraft.

Referring to Figure l, a net unit it) is shown suspended by means of a sling l1 underneath a helicopter 12. To support sling 11 in position a release device 13 is suspended below the helicopter 12 to provide for fastening or releasing ring 14 of sling 11 in a manner to permit rapid engaging or disengaging of the load.

' The construction of the net will be most clearly seen by reference to Figure 2 in which it will be observed that the basic shape of the net is in the form of a box, the net having a bottom and four walls. It will be further noted that the bottom of the net is made up of a plurality of cable runs extending in zig-zag relationship with respect to the edges of the bottom. A cable run is used to mean a portion of cable which extends from one edge to another whether located on the bottom or side. Thus a single length of cable mayinclude more than one run. Thus, the bottom edge cable run 15 extends from corner fitting 16 diagonally to fitting l7 and back to edge fitting lea and thence extends to fitting 17a and fitting 16b, etc.. The next bottom run it; extends through edge fitting 19 back through fitting l7 and then alternately through fittings 1%, 1911, etc., and fittings 17a, 17]), etc., to the opposite edge at 19f. Cable run 18 is part of the same length of cable as cable run 13a which alternates between fittings 20, 2611, etc., and fittings 19, 19a, etc. Thus cable runs 18 and 13a form a complete loop joined by fitting 2i. This pattern is repeated by cables 22 and 22a passing through fittings 2d, 20a, etc., 23, 235:, etc., and 24, 24a, etc., to form another complete loop joined by fitting 25. This pattern is repeated throughout the bottom of the net.

It will be observed that the edge cable run 15 of the bottom may extend through corner fitting 16 then across the Wall of the net in zig-zag fashion, extending through fitting 26 back to fitting 16a and then to fitting 26a, etc., to fitting 16f. Thus, runs 15 and 15a form a complete loop, the loop joint being made at fitting 27. In similar fashion the next run 28 in the wall of the net extends from fitting 29 to fitting 26 and across to fitting 29 and returns as run 28a through fittings 36c, 2%, etc. Thus ,runs 28 and 23a, in similar fashion to previously described double runs, form a complete loop joined by fitting 31. In this way mesh points of the side of the not above the edge incorporating fittings 16, all have their fittings parallel to the fittings in the bottom of the net. In fact this side of the net and the opposite side are a continuation of the bottom and can be manufactured as a fiat portion of the net in a single piece.

Referring now to the other sides of the net, it will be seen that the lower cable member 32 extends from corner fitting 16 where cable 32 starts, to corner fitting 33 where cable 32 terminates at its other end. Cable 32 at its upper mesh corner passes through fittings 34, 34a, etc. The next two runs 35 and 35a form a com plete loop passing through various fittings 34, 36 and 37 in a fashion similar to that described for the bottom and side runs. Runs 35 and 35a are joined at fitting 38 to complete the loop. It will be noted that runs 35 and 35a pass through the corner fitting 29 and the corner fitting 362. These corner fittings are located in a vertical direction as compared to the other fittings in the bottom and sides of the net which are located with their longitudinal axes in a horizontal direction.

In this manner the net is constructed to provide the box like shape consisting of the bottom and four sides with all the corner fittings disposed vertically and all other wall fittings disposed horizontal-1y. The supporting rings 40 are attached to the corner of the upper edge meshes by double fittings 41 to provide added strength. The attachment of rings 40 is by short lengths of cable 42 disposed diagonally as illustrated to carry out the diagonal mesh arrangement of the sides of the net. ting 43 is provided to form a loop in cable 42 to retain ring 40 in position.

With the construction described above in which the wall members of the net are constructed with the fittings located in a horizontal direction the sides of the net may be readily folded down as illustrated in Figure 3. Thus with the bottom meshes in extended position and the side walls folded down the load can be easily placed in position on the net. As soon as the loading operation is completed the side walls may be quickly extended upwardly around the load, indicated by chain dotted lines 39, after which the hooks 11a of sling may be inserted into rings 40 so that the net will be supported in the fashion illustrated in Figure 1 ready for transport.

A variation in form of this net construction is illustrated in Figures 4 to 7 inclusive. Here it will be seen that the bottom of the net is built into a shallow box or tray with the net bottom in extended mesh position. The tray 44 is preferably made of fiberglass cloth and plastic molded into position around the cables which form the bottom of the net and also around a portion of at least the first mesh of the side walls. The manner in which the net cables are formed integrally into tray 44 will be clear from Figures 4, and 6. Figure 6, for example, illustrates the bottom cable runs 15, 18 and 18a, extending through the bottom of tray 44, the ma terial of the tray completely surrounding the various cable members. Figures 5 and 6 to simplify the illustration. It will be noted that the tray 44 is formed at two of its edges 45 and 46 with a sled runner shape so that the tray unit may be skidded along readily in either direction. The other sides 47 and 48 of the tray are preferably substantially vertical and may be equipped with fittings 49, the purpose of which will be discussed later. 7

'It will be noted that the net structure shown in Figure 4 is equipped with wall extensions composed of cable runs, 50, 51, 52 and 53 which form triangular sections,

eachhaving an area approximately one-quarter the area of the top of the net. At one side of each triangular portion hooks 54 are provided while at the other side rings 55 are attached to some of the cable runs. The triangular portions of the net thus provide for closing the top by snapping hooks 54 from one section into rings 55 of an adjacent section. In this way, a loaded net is completely enclosed on all sides thereby preventing loss of any article from the net even though it might be turned to an inverted position.

In order to support the loaded net with its integral bottom tray, special cables as shown at 56, 56a, 57, 57a, 58 and 58a extend from the lower portion of each side of the net upwardly in angular relationship to ring member 59 to which all of the cables supporting one side are attached. By attaching. all of the rings or fittings S9 to a single support the complete net may thus be supported froma central point. This construction is ideally suited for handling materiel being dropped from aircraft by parachutes. By means of thenet with its closed The cable fittings have been omitted in 1'.

top the loaded articles may be securely held in position on the tray which also serves to hold the load against excessive deformation during the shock of parachute opening and landing. The lifting cables 56, 57, 58, etc., preferably are connected to the mesh cables by swagedon fittings, at least some of which are embedded within the plastic tray as illustrated at 60, 61 and 62. Also each cable 56, 57 and 58 preferably extends diagonally across the bottom of the net to join the corresponding support cables 56a, 57a and 58a at the next adjacent side. The bottom extension of these cables is indicated at 56b, 57b and 58b in Figure 6. In this way the main load carrying cables are securely connected to the net members and also securely embedded in the plastic tray member 44 to provide an even distribution of the load among the cables and to provide maximum carrying capacity by extending the cables underneath the load. Fittings 63 are provided at each corner of the tray unit 44. These fittings are conveniently located to permit quickly attaching a tow line which may be used to tow the loaded tray or pallet from the landing point to any desired storage location. The rugged reinforced plastic construction of the tray member permits hauling the load over rough, hard surfaces without damage to the load.

The manner in which the side fittings 49 are used will be seen from Figure 7. Here the floor ofthe aircraft is indicated at 64. Retaining channels 65 are spaced the proper distance apart to engage fittings 49 at each side of the pallet 44 so that the loaded unit is positively retained in position in the aircraft against displacement by rough air conditions. The floor of the aircraft is equipped with rollers 66 which are used to provide easy loading and unloading of the pallet 44 from the aircraft. Thus, each pallet may be securely retained in position during flight. In order to unload, the parachute equipment attached to the most rearward pallet 44 is released and the attached net and pallet load is drawn out the rear door of the aircraft for lowering to the ground by the parachute.

From the foregoing description it will be evident that I have provided a net construction having improved features particularly for use with suspended loads. The relationship of the side wall cable runs provides a satisfactory box shape. Also the rnanner in which the net bottom and side walls are constructed provides a readily collapsible unit because of the diagonal relationship of the net with respect to corners of the net. This diagonal relationship which gives increased flexibility permits the net to readily adapt itself to unusual shaped loads. At the same time the diagonal relationship gives improved support to the load once the net is drawn tightly around it and secured. The horizontal direction of the swaged connecting fittings provides a construction in which the sides can be quickly raised or lowered somewhat like a curtain since this construction provides a natural collapsing action in the vertical direction. The use of a plastic pallet as an integral part of a net of this nature greatly increases the utility of the net, particularly in some fields of operation. The use of the pallet with a net having a top closure permits a compact load to be rigidly supported against various types of shock loads such as are received in connection with loads dropped by parachute. The use of inherently applied lifting cables further provides for the increased shock loads and rugged handling received in aircraft drop load operations.

I claim:

1. A box shaped sling net made of flexible cable having diagonal weave in which the individual cables run in zig-zag fashion, a wrap around fitting connecting the corner of each of a plurality of inner meshes to the corner of an adjacent mesh, the bottom and two opposite sides of the box net being formed in a substantially continuous pattern in'which the metal fittings lie in parallel relationship, the corners of the net beingformed by using connecting fittings to join the corners of meshes which normally lie in one vertical plane to the corners of meshes which normally lie in a diiferent vertical plane.

2. A box shaped sling net made of flexible cable having a diagonal weave and having a bottom and four sides, a wrap around fitting connecting the corner of each of a plurality of inner meshes to the corner of an adjacent mesh, the bottom and two opposite sides being formed in a substantially continuous pattern in which the fittings liein parallel relationship, the other two sides being formed with lengths of cable separate from the bottom and first mentioned two sides, the fittings of. other two sides being in parallel relationship to the fittings in said opposite sides when the net is in loaded position with the sides extended, the corners of the box being formed by connecting thecorners of a plurality of meshes of the sides which are continuous with the bottom with the corners of a plurality of meshes of the other two sides.

3. A net construction in accordance with claim 2 in which the longitudinal direction of the fittings for the sides in general lies in a horizontal direction, the corner fittings being in a vertical direction.

4. A box net construction according to claim 1 and incorporating a plurality of angularly disposed lifting cables at least some of which extend diagonally across a portion of the bottom of the box in close parallel relationship with the sides of bottom meshes, said lifting cables being retained in position alongside the sides of said bottom meshes by metal connecting fittings.

5. A net construction in accordance with claim 2 in which the bottom of the box net incorporates a molded reinforced plastic tray into which the bottom meshes are embedded in their open extended position.

6. A net construction in accordance with claim 5 in which the tray incorporates a curved edge at the bottom portion.

6 7. A net construction according to claim 5 in which opposite sides of said tray are provided with brackets, for positioning and retaining the net in a vehicle during transport.

8. A box shaped sling net made of flexible cable the general construction of which incorporates a plurality of meshes having their sides disposed in diagonal relationship with respect to the edges of the box net, the corners of the net being formed by connecting the corners of a plurality of meshes which normally lie in one plane to the corners of a plurality of meshes which normally lie in another plane at an angle thereto, the upper edge of each side incorporating a plurality of supporting fittings, each fitting being connected to the corner of a mesh.

9. A box shaped sling net made of flexible cable the general construction of which incorporates a plurality of meshes having their sides disposed in diagonal relationship with respect to the edges of the box net, the corners of the net being formed by connecting the corners of a plurality of meshes which normally lie in one plane to the corners of a plurality of meshes which normally lie in a plane at an angle thereto, a plurality of sides extending beyond the top edge of the net to provide a top closure, fittings attached to said side extensions for connecting them together.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,705,461 Campbell Apr. 5, 1955 FOREIGN PATENTS 32,401 Netherlands July 15, 1932 

